Economists see climate change as a tragedy of the commons problem. We benefit by putting carbon into the atmosphere because it means cheap electricity and cheap gasoline. It saves us money in the short term, but eventually if we continue, we'll all suffer.

Nobel prize winner Elinor Ostrom says the answer to fixing rising temperatures has to come from the people not the government. But reducing our carbon emissions is expensive and some economists wonder if we're willing to pay for it. To answer that question, German zoologist, Manfred Milinski come up with a game that tests how much we would be willing to pay now to save the Earth later. Joined by a special group of NPR staff, the Planet Money teams plays his game and gets a surprising result.

After the jump, the self proclaimed "King of Eco Rap," says "stop with the excuses and make a contribution."